TV ad calls on Edison to keep San Onofre nuclear reactors shut down

A new television ad campaign targeting Southern California Edison calls on residents to let the utility know that their families come first -- and that it must not restart the troubled San Onofre nuclear reactors, which are currently closed due to serious safety problems.

"Why is Southern California Edison trying to reopen the plant, covering up evidence of more reactor defects?," the ad's narrator asks. "Profits? Demand that the safety of your family come first. Keep the San Onofre nuclear reactors shut down."

The ad parallels the threat from San Onofre's troubled reactors with the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan -- and notes that eight million Americans live within 50 miles of San Onofre, the distance the U.S. government advised should be evacuated in the Japan disaster.

A report released last week by one of the nation's leading independent nuclear engineers revealed serious unresolved safety problems with the steam generators at San Onofre's two aging nuclear reactors and warned the problems could lead to accidents and significant radiation releases if the reactors are allowed to restart. The paper also documented that Edison misled the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission about changes made to the reactors, failing to disclose differences between old and new steam generators that could seriously compromise the safety of the reactors.

Hours after the report was released, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced that the reactors would stay offline until the cause of the major damage to the steam generators was identified and corrective action taken. However, Southern California Edison has restated its commitment to turning the reactors back on as soon as possible.

"The Nuclear Regulatory Commission knows these reactors need to stay offline, and Southern California families know it too," said Damon Moglen, climate and energy project director at Friends of the Earth. "But Southern California Edison is pushing ahead. That's unacceptable, especially after it was its deception that led to this dangerous situation. People deserve better than to have their power company racing to restart dangerous nuclear reactors after one sprang a radioactive leak and when both threaten much worse."

The ad was paid for by Friends of the Earth. It was endorsed by Citizens Oversight Projects, Committee to Bridge the Gap, Physicians for Social Responsibility -- Los Angeles, Residents Organized for a Safe Environment (ROSE), San Clemente Green, SanOnofreSafety.org, and the Peace Resource Center of San Diego, all groups representing local residents endangered by the San Onofre reactors.

Nuclear watchdog Friends of the Earth has been campaigning on the dangers of nuclear power since its founding in 1969.